Nancy Pelosi Visits Child Development Center In Worcester To Discuss President Biden's Child Care Plan
WORCESTER (CBS) -- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was in Worcester Thursday morning to call for expanded access to affordable child care.
She joined Congressman Jim McGovern at the Rainbow Child Development Center to learn about their innovative work with at-risk kids. RCDC Executive Director Paula Perrier hosted the event.
"It is such a treat. I would say honor and privilege, yeah, but a real treat to be here at Rainbow. To see the joy in the children's eyes that they respect that they are receiving to express themselves in many different ways. And they're really actually funny," Pelosi said.
The center works with about 250 highly at-risk kids daily, ranging from babies to 13-year-olds.
"Our children are 100 percent of our future, and people here at Rainbow get it," McGovern said.
Pelosi and McGovern also met with parents to promote President Biden's Build Back Better Plan, which Congress is debating whether to make permanent.
"The parents were telling us what the difference in paychecks makes," said Pelosi. "They said, 'We can see the difference in our children, what we are able to do for them.'"
The plan includes an expanded child tax credit, investments in child care, and universal pre-K.
"Since the Biden Child Tax Credits started going out in July, millions of households with kids have received monthly checks," said McGovern. "In terms of improving the lives of people in our country at every level, this is going to be a big deal."
Pelosi called the plan "transformation".
"For women, for children, for our economy, for our society, what the president is advocating is transformational. It's not incremental. It's transformational."
The House Speaker also said several times she plans to take all she's learned on her trip back to the Capitol with her.
A RNC spokesperson criticized her trip to Massachusetts, saying it was "inappropriate" and "insensitive" after what she said was the Biden administration's "failed withdrawal" from Afghanistan.
"It's inappropriate and insensitive for Nancy Pelosi to be promoting the Democrats' agenda when Americans are still stranded in Afghanistan," RNC Spokesperson Rachel Lee. "Pelosi should get back to Washington, D.C., and demand answers for Biden's failed withdrawal from Afghanistan."
